How Internships Will Help in Your Job Search or Changing Careers

Finding a company or an organization that will hire you as an intern is definitely an easier thing to do than trying to get a full time job with very little experience in your resume. Thus, it makes a lot of sense to apply for an internship in a huge company where you can get work experience that will attract future employers.

With gaining valuable experience in mind, here are the things you can do while you are an intern, so that you can make the most out of your time investment:

Take control of your role as an intern.

Interns are often treated like a regular worker, so they are asked to do things that regular employees do. However, it is also common for interns to be asked to do the most irrelevant and boring things in the office. You don’t have to experience this, though.

Remember that you are not on the company’s payroll, so you can be more proactive when it comes to asking for what activities you will spend time on. Think about what skills you need to develop, which will make you marketable in your field. Talk to your supervisor and ask if you could be assigned to work in a certain department or with a certain person. This way, you will gain the experience and learn the things that will be useful for your job search later on.

Participate in conferences and industry events.

Joining an internship program is also a good opportunity to build your network. Be willing to go to industry events where you can meet people in the field. Be sure to go there with your own business card indicating your position in your current company. You should also look presentable, and you must act in a very professional manner. You will never know who you will meet in such events, so you have to grab this kind of opportunity.

Get a thing or two from your coworker.

The regular employees in the company or organization where you are working as an intern are also a good source of information about the career you want to pursue, or the job you dream to have. Be friendly with them and don’t hesitate to ask about how they find their jobs. You would want to know if they like the workplace culture in the company, for instance. You can also ask how promotions are given in the company.

Such information might not be relevant to you yet, but they will at least give you an idea about how the company works and how its workers perform their jobs. Through this, you may decide if this is the right career for you, or perhaps you should think about changing careers at this early stage. Either way, this will help you make an informed decision about your career.

Why Is an Uncertain Career Path Good for Your Career Search?

When it comes to planning your career, experts would always emphasize the importance of having a clear career plan as well as taking the necessary steps towards the achievement of one’s goals. We all want to have a clear career path, but the truth is, it is easier said than done.

If you’re not quite sure about your career path, don’t panic. Aside from the fact that you are not the only person with this dilemma, there are good things you can get from experimenting in your career, such as:

a. You will gain good perspective.

Although experimenting, or jumping from one career to another, will not give you extensive experience in one field, it gives you a great opportunity to get many good perspectives. If you plan on becoming a manager eventually, having a broad perspective will work to your advantage because you are someone who knows what the different jobs of your employees entail.

b. You can eliminate bad career options.

When you experiment with multiple industries and professions, you will be able to eliminate those career paths that will never work for you. Since you will be spending some time in each position or job, you will somehow get an idea of which ones you may potentially pursue as a career, and which ones you will never ever do again because it’s just not a good fit.

c. You will develop transferable skills.

Whatever job you do, or industry you try, there are a lot of common skills that will enable you to succeed. Skills in communication, interaction, problem solving, and other transferable skills will be your big advantage when you apply for any work. These skills are hardly mentioned in job postings or job descriptions, but these are the skills that employers and hiring managers are always in search for.

d. You can know yourself more.

The best thing about experimenting in various industries or jobs is that you get to know more about yourself. You will have to deal with different situations and will interact with many different people, which will reveal to yourself who you really are and what you are capable of doing. This is very important especially when you start to get serious in choosing a career to pursue. When you know yourself well, you know what your strengths and weaknesses are, and this gives you an idea of what careers will suit you and what will not.

Conclusion

A winding and uncertain career path is not always a bad thing. By experimenting, you get a lot of opportunities to try different things. What’s important is to always remember and carry the lessons you learn from all your experiences and use them as your guide in your career search.

Important Things You Must Convey in an Interview for Your Job Search Canada

There are many ways you can prepare for a job interview. In fact, there are a lot of tips you will find online that will teach you many tricks so you may have a successful job interview. But in the end, you are the only one who can answer the questions being thrown to you by the interviewees.

No matter what the questions are and whatever type of interview you get, what’s important is that you convey these important messages to the hiring manager or potential employer:

1. That you will have a positive impact even on your very first day.

It is important that you leave the hiring manager believing that you can make an impact in the workplace on your first day. To do this, focus on your relevant skills and experience, and make sure you connect them to the job you are applying for. This way, your interviewer won’t think that you need further training to be able to perform your job.

2. That you will easily get along and fit in with other workers.

It is important that you get along well with your coworkers, but more importantly, you need to fit in. Thus, it is important that you have a clear understanding of your role and what you should do in that role. During the interview, you’ve got to make sure the hiring manager sees that you perfectly understand the job and that you know what is expected of you.

3. That you are super enthusiastic about this job.

Passion and enthusiasm are two important traits that should never go lacking in any job candidate. It is important that you show your interviewers how passionate you are about the job or the company, and that you cannot wait to be part of their team.

Employers know that skills can be learned and acquired, but a positive attitude and enthusiasm at work will always be a rare trait that only the best employees have. Thus, this is what you want to show while you are being interviewed for the job.

4. That you are confident that you will be successful in the job.

Confidence is a very important trait that, unfortunately, not all of us have. When you know you have good things to contribute to a company, there is no reason for you not to be confident about getting a job and doing well in that job. You need to show everyone that you know yourself, especially in terms of what you can do to help the company succeed.

Let’s face it; everything here is easier said than done. And so, it is important that you be mentally prepared for your interview when you begin your job search Canada, so that you could leave the interviewer with a good and positive impression of you.

Looking for Toronto Jobs? Here Are Some Job Search Myths to Forget

It is unfortunate that so many job seekers begin their search for the right job with a lot of unrealistic expectations about how their job search will proceed and end. It is often because of these expectations that they end up being frustrated and disappointed in themselves.

If you want your job search to be less stressful and more likely to be successful, then it’s important that you not believe in the following myths. Instead, turn your attention and focus on how you may impress the hiring manager or your potential employer.

#1 – The right candidates always get through the automated system.

If you choose to submit a job application online, all your documents are submitted to a tracking system that is designed to screen out applicants based on job titles, dates, and keywords. According to statistics, out of every 1,000 applications sent online, only around 5 actually make it to the hiring manager’s desk. Thus, being the perfect candidate is not an assurance that even an automated system will pick you over the others.

This means that it is very important that you spend more time writing a good resume and cover letter. This is the only way you can increase your chances of being electronically picked.

#2 – You will get a response for every application you make.

Typically, hiring managers choose to contact only those candidates with the biggest potential of getting hired. These candidates are often contacted to be invited for an interview. While there are many companies that send automated response emails to job applicants, there are many also that will not even try to reach the applicants.

If you’ve waited for weeks or months already for a response from the company you applied for, you shouldn’t waste your time waiting for it. Even after you send the application, you should move on to other opportunities out there.

#3 – Your passion is enough to compensate for your lack of qualification.

Job descriptions exist because employers need to let people know what they are looking for, and what their hired employee will be doing on the job. While it is good that you are passionate about something, you cannot completely rely on it to be enough to convince the employer that you’re the right person for the job. Thus, it should be your goal to continuously learn and develop skills, so you could be considered well qualified for the job.

#4 If you’re meant for the job, you will have it.

It is good to have a positive mindset and attitude towards your job search, but it doesn’t mean that you can rely only on fate to get the job you want. If you want your application for Toronto jobs to be in the hands of the hiring manager, then you should make it happen. Don’t just sit there are wait for a development. Be proactive, use your network, and follow up on employers you’ve submitted your application to.